It’s been a tough winter for most South Africans, despite the blessings of abundant rain in the Cape. When the weather is cold, we immediately reach for warming foods – particularly liquids such as soups, hot chocolates and endless cups of tea and coffee.
At the Food24 office, we’re quite fond of fancy coffees but what about the humble and reliable instant coffee? We decided to put them to the test: read on for the results.
We compared price per kilo:
HERE ARE THE RESULTS:
1. Douwe Egberts Pure Gold
By far the most expensive coffee on our Taste Test panel, Douwe Egberts Pure Gold scored well. Tasters noted a flavourful coffee aroma, but most admitted that this is a stronger coffee that needs some milk. It was also mentioned that most shoppers choose this coffee for the versatile reusable glass jar – even if no one is really sure how to pronounce it…!
2. Frisco Rich & Creamy Original Powder
We didn’t have much hope for old Frisco, a South African classic “coffee flavoured drink”. A blended coffee and chicory powder, Frisco was by far the cheapest but alas, it just doesn’t compare to the 100% coffee products.
3. Jacobs Krönung
Jacobs is a popular premium choice, and we got lucky with a great special price at only R84 for 200g. It was described as ‘easy drinking’ and showed a good flavour and a slight bitterness.
RECIPE: Baked pudding with coffee syrup
4. Nescafé Classic
Being one of the best selling coffees in the world, this it was the most popular coffee in our taste test. It had a wonderful aroma, and good strength. Most tasters would prefer to double up on the coffee, however. According to Nestlé Southern Africa Head of Coffee, Nicole Roos (what a job!) 5500 cups of Nescafé Classic are consumed worldwide every second.
5. Nescafé Gold Original
Glittery packaging aside, the Nescafe Gold failed to deliver a strong punch. Some tasters found the aroma “a bit flat”, and the taste too mild for our tasters. It would make a great coffee for black coffee drinkers or for those who prefer a lighter flavour. Nescafé Gold is also available in a number of stronger variants, which weren’t featured in this test.
READ MORE ABOUT NECAFÉ GOLD on Business Insider SA
6. Nescafé Ricoffy
The familiar coffee of break rooms and tea time up and down the country, Ricoffy offers a great compromise between coffee flavour and economy. The mild, sweet flavour was a favourite with a few tasters. It also performed really well, coming in 4th place behind the three premium coffees. Nicole Roos of Nestlé told us that in South Africa 6 out of 10 coffee cups are Ricoffy coffee.
And the winner is Nescafé Classic!
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All original images by Katy Rose.
Checkers Antigua Classic Roast Instant Coffee Rating:
Aroma 0
Taste 0
Just unsealed a new bottle and hard to describe the smell in the bottle, definitely not a coffee aroma, it’s awful!
Being french means I love coffee. My name is Dr. Alexandre (Alex) and I love all kinds of coffee and I have tasted coffee from all over the world. I have coffee machine that makes from cappuccino to Latte and so forth. When it comes to instant coffee I love the Nescafe Espresso and the Nescafe Alta rica. The Jacobs i don’t like as once you drink the second cup it taste like as if the coffee burned. The Jacobs decaf I must say has a nice taste and that goes for one cup after the next. Frisco is a nicer taste than Ricoffy. With Douwe Egberts the French connection and the decaf has the best taste the that range. The two top once is taste is Nescafe espresso and Nescafe Alta Rica and both have a beautiful smell.